Reform UK’s shadow chancellor Robert Jenrick has called for an end to mass migration after new research estimated that migration has reduced typical British workers’ annual pay outside London by £1,060.
“This vital research disproves everything the Left have been claiming about immigration,” Jenrick said.
“Mass, low-skilled migration suppresses the wages of British workers. That’s why Reform’s plan to end mass migration and reverse the Boriswave will make the British people better off.”
The study, by Cambridge Circus Research, used previously unpublished HMRC data to compare the pay of British and non-British workers across 147 local authorities in England.
It estimated that British workers outside London faced a combined £18.2 billion reduction in pay in 2025 compared with what they would otherwise have earned. Workers in the bottom half of earners were hardest hit, largely through lower hourly wages.
The research also found that non-UK nationals accounted for 80% of the growth in payrolled jobs between 2015 and 2025. Jobs held by non-UK nationals rose by almost two-thirds, while those held by UK nationals increased by less than 3%. Around one in five of all payrolled jobs is now held by a non-UK national.
The think tank recommended ending visas for low-wage work and setting high salary thresholds for skilled foreign workers.
Under a Reform government, British workers will come first. Reform will end the reliance on cheap foreign labour, raise visa salary thresholds and make employers invest in British skills. For too long, British workers have paid the price for mass migration. Reform will put an end to it.
“This vital research disproves everything the Left have been claiming about immigration,” Jenrick said.
“Mass, low-skilled migration suppresses the wages of British workers. That’s why Reform’s plan to end mass migration and reverse the Boriswave will make the British people better off.”
The study, by Cambridge Circus Research, used previously unpublished HMRC data to compare the pay of British and non-British workers across 147 local authorities in England.
It estimated that British workers outside London faced a combined £18.2 billion reduction in pay in 2025 compared with what they would otherwise have earned. Workers in the bottom half of earners were hardest hit, largely through lower hourly wages.
The research also found that non-UK nationals accounted for 80% of the growth in payrolled jobs between 2015 and 2025. Jobs held by non-UK nationals rose by almost two-thirds, while those held by UK nationals increased by less than 3%. Around one in five of all payrolled jobs is now held by a non-UK national.
The think tank recommended ending visas for low-wage work and setting high salary thresholds for skilled foreign workers.
Under a Reform government, British workers will come first. Reform will end the reliance on cheap foreign labour, raise visa salary thresholds and make employers invest in British skills. For too long, British workers have paid the price for mass migration. Reform will put an end to it.
